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The City of Kelso has announced the vacancy of Council Position No. 3, held by Mr. Jared Franklin, in accordance with Section 2.06 of the City Charter. The charter states that a vacancy occurs in the event a councilmember fails to attend six scheduled regular and/or special meetings of the Council during a calendar year unless on authorized City-related business. Councilmember Franklin’s absence from the December 8, 2015 special meeting was his sixth of the year, and in accordance with the charter, the vacancy occurred at the close of the meeting.

The City Council will discuss options for filling the vacancy at its December 15th regular meeting. The Council has sixty (60) days upon the occurrence of the vacancy to appoint a qualified person to fill the remainder of the unexpired term. Position No. 3 represents the West Kelso council district.

Kelso Mayor, David Futcher, has proclaimed a state of emergency effective December 9, 2015 related to the recent heavy rains and flooding. In accordance with Chapter 2.92 of the Kelso Municipal Code the City Council will confirm this proclamation at the December 15, 2015 regular meeting.

The City will be hosting a workshop to discuss a vision statement, guiding principles and various alternative design and development regulations to be incoroporated in to the West Kelso Subarea Plan. The workshop will be on November 19, 2015 from 6:00-8:00 at the Kelso Senior Center located at 106 8th Ave.

This report highlights the potential for annexation in four pockets of unincorporated South Kelso, and will go over the properties in their current state and infrastructure, the financial gains and costs, and the effects of annexation.

The City of Kelso is requesting qualifications and proposals from interested Real Estate firms/brokers to sell and/or lease various city properties. The Real Estate broker will be retained as an independent contractor, pursuant to a professional services contract approved by the City Council. The term of appointment, compensation and other requirements will be established pursuant to a contract.

The City of Kelso is accepting proposals to select a qualified professional surveying firm to provide comprehensive professional surveyor services in support of the Community Development Department on an as-needed basis for a two-year period. Full Request for Proposal

On September 16, 2015, City Manager Steve Taylor gave a State of the City presentation at the Kelso-Longview Chamber of Commerce Quarterly Luncheon. Click here to view the 2015 State of the City presentation.

The West Kelso Subarea Plan will help establish a vision and guiding principles as part of a larger subarea planning effort in the West Kelso neighborhood. The vision and guiding principles will be based largely on public input and form the basis for the subarea plan which will generate a blueprint for a continued revitalization effort and economic development strategy. The subarea plan will address the many challenges and opportunities facing West Kelso and provide significant opportunities for public input. The City and consultant team looks forward to hearing from you.

This survey is intended to help identify challenges and assets in the community so that they may inform priorities for West Kelso’s future.

The City of Kelso and Love Overwhelming have come to a mutual agreement to resolve the issues in the drug abatement lawsuit pertaining to the non-profit agency’s emergency shelter facility at 304 Cowlitz Way and other security concerns that impact the community. The City of Kelso, Cowlitz County and Love Overwhelming will continue to work collaboratively to provide services to the homeless population of our community while ensuring the safety and livability of the surrounding neighborhood.

The City of Kelso, in association with Socrata today announced the implementation of Open Budget, a suite of breakthrough open data financial transparency apps for government. Open Budget is designed for quick deployment and citizen empowerment.Open Budget Kelso can be accessed directly at http://budget.kelso.gov or through the City’s website at www.kelso.gov/budget. The City Council will receive a walk-through demonstration of the application at its July 21st, 2015 regular meeting held at Kelso City Hall at 6:00pm. Click here to view the full press release.